Green Room

NYT addresses the IRS scandal in Buffalo Bill style

This was the headline on the NYT editorial about the IRS scandal last night:

Apparently unable to bring itself to institutionally condemn the political abuse of power the IRS engaged in—probably because the same editorial page endorsed it explicitly last year—the Grey Lady was reduced to “it puts the lotion on its skin.”

This morning, the headline has been changed to this passive-voice doozy:

The I.R.S. Audits Are Condemned

Really, guys? That’s crappy writing and a crappy moral compass. The editorial excuses the NYT’s own cheerleading for the IRS abuse, glides over the IRS’ “serious mistake,” begrudgingly conceded, to go on to demand better regulation of political speech and mourn that this OBVIOUS, ADMITTED ABUSE OF POWER BY THE IRS TARGETED AT THE WHITE HOUSE’S POLITICAL ENEMIES might, gasp!, give those political enemies the chance to make political hay of this and distract from real stuff like gun control and more campaign finance reform.

Inevitably, the stumble by the I.R.S. will now be used by the Republicans as a point of attack. They are gleefully promising months of hearings, and the National Republican Congressional Committee is already trying to tarnish Democratic lawmakers with what it calls “the Obama administration’s use of the I.R.S. as a political tool.”

This will serve as the perfect distraction from issues, like the budget, gun control or immigration reform. And it will probably prevent any real progress on campaign finance reform, which, in turn, will make it vastly more difficult for the I.R.S. to prevent abuse of the tax code.

Blowback

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